Background Adenocarcinoma of the proximal stomach is the fastest rising malignancy in North America. It is commonly associated with peritoneal accumulation of malignant ascites (MA), a fluid containing cancer and inflammatory cells and soluble proteins. Peritoneal metastasis (PM) is the most common site of gastric cancer (GC) progression after curative-intent surgery and is the leading cause of death among GC patients. Methods/results Using a panel of gastric adenocarcinoma cell lines (human: MKN 45, SNU-5; murine: NCC-S1M), we demonstrate that prior incubation of GC cells with MA results in a significant (> 1.7-fold) increase in the number of cells capable of adhering to human peritoneal mesothelial cells (HPMC) ( p  < 0.05). We then corroborate these findings using an ex vivo PM model and show that MA also significantly enhances the ability of GC cells to adhere to strips of human peritoneum ( p  < 0.05). Using a multiplex ELISA, we identify MIF and VEGF as consistently elevated across MA samples from GC patients ( p  < 0.05). We demonstrate that agents that block the effects of MIF or VEGF abrogate the ability of MA to stimulate the adhesion of GC cells to adhere to human peritoneum and promote both ex vivo and in vivo metastases. Conclusion Agents targeting MIF or VEGF may be relevant to the treatment or prevention of PM in GC patients .